Musicians paying tribute to Pete Seeger in Westport

Scott Gargan

Updated 9:51 am, Monday, June 16, 2014

Singer/songwriter Suzanne Sheridan will perform at a tribute concert to the late singer/activist Pete Seeger will at Coffeehouse at the Wheelerís at Westport Historical Society on Friday, June 13.
Photo: Contributed Photo

Taylor will join singer-songwriter Suzanne Sheridan and a group of local musicians for an evening of civil rights/Vietnam War-era protest songs in tribute to the late folk icon at the Westport Historical Society on Friday, June 13.

Taylor, who spent decades repairing Seeger's instruments, will kick off the evening performing songs by and telling stories about the folk singer, who died in January after a celebrated career of environmental activism and artistic triumph.

"He shared so much with me and those of us in the Walkabout Clearwater Chorus," a Seeger-founded vocal group, Taylor, of Weston, said. "He had such a passion for helping people all over the world. We owe it to him and the people of the world to share his message and his passion."

Sheridan, who began her career writing jingles for such companies as Pepsi, Hasbro toys and Texaco, and music for PBS' "The Electric Company," will perform a selection of of Seeger hits, including "If I Had a Hammer," along with other favorites of the counterculture era.

Unlike Taylor, Sheridan never met Seeger. Still, she said, "He has always been a big part of my life.

"He's the kind of guy I always respected," Sheridan, of Westport, said. "He had the courage, the vision, and he believed that music and social justice were compatible."

Taylor first met Seeger in 1973 at the Clearwater Festival, an event organized by the singer first to raise funds for the Clearwater Sloop, a nonprofit organization that runs environmental education and advocacy programs, and later, for a wide range of causes relating to the environment and the Hudson River.

Taylor had always been a fan of Seeger's music. But he was even more interested in his guitars.

"I wanted to learn about the 12-string guitar that (Liverpool engineer) Stanley Francis made for Seeger," Taylor recalled. "I wanted to know what made his guitars different from the commercial guitars that were available on the market."

Intent on finding out about the iconic 12-string, Taylor wrote a letter to Seeger's manager requesting a meeting with the singer. Not long after, he received a reply with instructions to come to the Clearwater Festival. Taylor was given no other directions on Seeger's exact whereabouts.

"To my luck, when I went to purchase a ticket, who's standing right there, picking up litter, but Pete," Taylor said.

Hoping to put some distance between him and his admirers ("Everyone was asking for Pete's autograph," Taylor recalled), Seeger brought Taylor to the river, where he was allowed to "observe the guitar, strum it."

"We were getting into it when a kid runs up and says, `Mr. Seeger, Mr. Seeger! You're on in five minutes!,' " Taylor said. "He looked me straight in eye and said, `I'll leave the guitar with you.'

"He had known me for 15, 20 minutes. This was instant trust."

Later, Taylor got to bring the guitar to Seeger on stage.

Thus kick-started a long and enduring friendship. Taylor built several guitars for Seeger; later, the singer asked Taylor to make several adjustments to the instruments.

Said Taylor: "From that day and up until his death, I was his repair person."